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Talking Points

As the month of February continues to bring record-breaking cold temperatures, the world of Young Adult literature is just beginning to heat up for the year! With new and continuing series and stand-alone novels in a variety of genres, there's something for everyone this month. Here are just a few highlights of what to expect.

If you are not going to leave the house today, you can still check out books and magazines from the library. Get cozy and curl up with an eBook from mediaondemand.org, or our newest collection: eReadIllinois.

Last Friday was our semi-annual Lock-in program for teens here at the Tinley Park Public Library. We get a lot of questions about the Lock-in from teens, parents, and even other staff members. When is it? Who is it for? What do you do? Do you sleep? How do you stay up the whole night?
In this post I hope to answer these and other frequently asked questions.

Perhaps you’ve heard the term “The Bechdel Test” uttered over the last few years, as the concept in feminist critical theory has received mainstream attention. But where does the test come from? The Bechdel Test, originating from a comic strip written by Alison Bechdel in 1985, was initially designed to evaluate films based on their portrayal of women. Are the women (if any) in a particular film multidimensional characters with significant roles in the plot? The test operates under the assumption that mainstream contemporary filmmakers (who statistically tend to be male) generally create films that do not portray women fairly or accurately.

As of Jan. 1 of this year, it is illegal in the state of Illinois to use a cell phone in your hands while driving. Consider pulling over if you must use the phone or invest in a hands-free Bluetooth wireless ear piece. With a TPPL barcode card number, the ConsumerReports.org database accessed via our website will provide you a great buying guide to these devices. Once you visit the ConsumerReports.org homepage, look for the search box at the top of the page and type "bluetooth headsets." You can also visit this link to find specific models rated on the PC Magazine website.

No Harry Nilsson!...have you ever heard of him? It seems like there are two kinds of people: those who love Harry, and those who have never heard of him. The new book Nilsson: The Life of a Singer-Songwriter by Alyn Shipton is a great new biography that covers Nilsson’s entire life, from his heartbreaking childhood through his meteoric rise to fame and his struggles with the many demons that lead to his career-ending physical problems. Nilsson had an aversion to performing live, which might explain his semi-obscurity today. This well-documented book is a perfect companion to the DVD Who is Harry Nilsson and Why is Everybody Talkin’ About Him?, available through interlibrary loan. *Susan from Administration

94% of Americans say that having a public library nearby improves the quality of life in their community, according to the recent poll released by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. Unsurprisingly, Americans highly value the resources and services provided by libraries.

So, what do you use your library for?
Are Libraries keeping up with technology, in your opinion?
What impact will the library have in your life, in the wired and interconnected future?

With the releases of Ender’s Game, The Book Thief, and Catching Fire in theaters this past month, all based on books by YA authors Orson Scott Card, Markus Zusak, and Suzanne Collins respectively, it is clear that the trend of adapting YA novels for the silver screen continues to grow. Beginning most prominently with J.K.